French corvette Iris (1806)

Rainbow drawn in 1809
History
French Navy EnsignFrance
NameIris
Ordered19 February 1803
BuilderDunkirk, plans by Brelocq, revised by Sané
Laid down19 February 1805
Launched11 October 1806
Commissioned1 October 1808
Captured3 January 1809
United Kingdom
NameHMS Rainbow
AcquiredFebruary 1809 by capture
FateSold 1815
General characteristics [1][2]
Class and typeIris-class corvette
Displacement756 tons (French)
Tons burthen5871794 (bm)
Length
  • 123 ft 9 in (37.7 m) (gundeck)
  • 105 ft 10+58 in (32.3 m) (keel)
Beam32 ft 5 in (9.9 m)
Depth of hold10 ft 1+12 in (3.1 m)
ComplementFrench service: 140 British service: 173
Armament
  • Originally: 20 × 8-pounder guns
  • 1808: 18 × 24-pounder carronades + 2 × 12-pounder long guns
  • British service:
  • Upper deck: 20 × 32-pounder carronade
  • QD: 6 × 18-pounder carronades
  • Fc: 2 × 6-pounder chase guns

Iris was a 20-gun corvette of the French Navy. The Royal Navy captured her in 1809 and took her into service as HMS Rainbow. She was sold in 1815.

  1. ^ Roche (2005), p. 260.
  2. ^ Winfield (2008), p. 242.